Octave | Mary Jo | Bekki | Barney | Morris | Keith | Kyle | Cody | Quincy

This web site was designed as a place where members of our family could share their interests with friends and family. So who ARE these Levenspiels in Oregon?

Mary Jo Smiley and Octave Levenspiel were married July 13, 1952. Tavy (Octave) taught Chemical Engineering and wrote text books while Mary Jo raised 3 children, Bekki (Rebecca), Barney (Joseph Bernard) and Morris. During the kids' high school years, Mary Jo returned to school and earned her PhD in Child Psychology. In 1992, Tavy retired, but just can't seem to stay away from haunting the halls of Chem. Eng. Dept. at OSU.
Mary Jo and Tavy thoroughly enjoy being grandparents but with the boys getting bigger and busier, they miss the 'babysitting' they often did. Now they attend the boys' tennis games, band concerts and art shows. Mary Jo is very interested in genealogy and is researching her relatives and Tavy's. She gets a real thrill when she finds a relative in Brazil, or South Africa. Tavy continues writng articles, recorrecting his books and lecturing around the world. He recently self-published a book "Rambling Through Science and Technology" and has a new book "Tracer Technology" submitted to a publisher.

As grownups, Bekki taught special education elementary children in Alaska and the Seattle area. In the 1980's, Bekki married Keith Levien, also a Chemical Engineer professor at OSU, gave up teaching and began family life raising 3 boys, Kyle, Cody and Quincy. She began her second 'career' as a graphic designer and dabbles in stained glass for fun. Currently (2011), Bekki is still doing freelance graphics, Kyle is attending Western Washington University, Cody is at Linfield College, Quincy is in high school and Keith continues to work teaching in the Chemical Engineering Dept at OSU.

Barney lived in Japan and Seattle and worked for a student exchange Japanese company called Labo. In the mid 80's while in Japan, Barney contracted a kidney disease that destroyed his kidneys, so he began dialysis while continuing to work and travel for Labo. In 2003, Barney passed away due to complications of a kidney transplant. He has left a huge hole in our family.

Morris resides in Portland, working as a property manager for commercial real estate. He recently became engaged to Julie. She and her two children have moved in and the whole family have become avid gardeners!

Now that we are all in Oregon, we see each other more often, spending weekends and holidays at Otter Rock and celebrating special events together. This web site is common ground where we can all share our own interests.